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Twenty Years to Midnight
"Twenty Years to Midnight" is an episode of the animated television series The Venture Bros., the fifth episode of the second season. Storyline A strange craft, possibly a spaceship, lands outside the Venture Compound at night. A tall, thin figure reminiscent of Galactus or the Celestials descends and scans the compound, locating Dr. Venture on the toilet. Inside, Brock is vacuuming the guest room when he finds a box under the bed. Opening it, he call for Dr. Venture on his wrist communicator. Dr. Venture arrives to find the boys pulling out the box's contents (Dean is pleased to find another sweater vest), but Brock points out the most interesting item: an apparent Betamax tape. Putting the tape in a player, they see a message recorded by Jonas Venture Sr. about 20 years ago. He explains that he had just finished decyphering a radio signal from deep space to find it was a message addressed to him specifically. The message directed him to assemble and activate his "greatest invention" at midnight on a specific date -- which turns out to be tomorrow. Failure to do so may have grave consequences for mankind, although he doesn't specify. He lists the locations of the components, and the first piece is stashed away on Spider Skull Island, now the home of Jonas Jr. Dr. Venture is not pleased that he has to deal with his brother again. Suddenly, the group turns to see the tall unearthly figure of the spacecraft's occupant looming outside the window. Going out to confront him, the being speaks in a booming voice that nearly deafens the Ventures, and makes Hank clutch his genitals. The being introduces himself as the Grand Galactic Inquisitor, there to pass judgment on humanity. But he instructs them to go about their normal routine and not to speak to him, booming "IGNORE ME!" in an overpowering manner. They fly to the island in the X-1, along with the Inquisitor. Sneaking onto the premises, Brock and the boys attempt to take the X-2 (the Venture Industries high-tech yacht) while Thaddeus goes to liberate the component from the compound. Onboard the X-2, Brock and the boys are spotted by someone with a flashlight who, after being tackled by Brock, turns out to be the faux ghost-pirate captain from Ghosts of the Sargasso. He explains he had taken to sleeping on the boat until Jonas Jr. found him and offered him a job as captain. Inside, as Rusty is sneaking through the building, he is discovered by a young woman in an intimate embrace with Jonas Jr. After some explanation the group gathers to watch the tape, and the clearly more competent and serious-minded Jonas confers with Brock on a plan, ignoring Rusty's protests. They split into three teams; Brock and Rusty in the X-1, Jonas and the Captain on the X-2, and Hank and Dean on the X-X-1 (a new aircraft built by Jonas Jr.). The teams race off. On board the fully automated X-X-1, Hank and Dean are overwhelmed by the craft's sophistication. Not only does it fly itself, but it has a lounge with comforts such as a "Space Invaders" machine. In a series of quick scenes, the three teams hunt for the components. Hank and Dean's trip takes them to the retreat of Col. Horace Gentleman, last seen in "Past Tense." But to their horror they discover him lying dead in his bed, his eyes wide open. Getting over their dismay, Dean reads through the colonel's diary, which is full of nonsensical ramblings. Hank finds the handle of Gentleman's walking stick comes off, and out slides the component, straight into Hank's eye. Jonas Jr. and the Captain are swimming in their scuba gear when they come to a bathysphere. Jonas Jr. radios the occupant, of "Quest Bell 1" asking to be allowed on board. Inside, the Venture team is shocked to discover an adult Jonny Quest, bedraggled, emaciated and half naked, with a length of rubber tubing tied around one bicep. Quest rants and waves a gun in their faces, until the Captain explains that Jonas Jr. is a doctor that can prescribe whatever Quest wants. Jonas hesitates, then plays along. In New York, Rusty and Brock have arrived at 1 Impossible Plaza, the headquarters of Impossible Industries, which is quite similar to Four Freedoms Plaza from the Fantastic Four. Rusty reveals that it used to be the site of the H.Q. of Venture Industries, and the next component was hidden in the foundation. Rusty plans to use his relationship with Sally Impossible to gain access. Inside 1 Impossible Plaza, Sally is packing to go out when she is confronted by Prof. Richard Impossible. He is quite suspicious of her desire to leave the building, but he finally agrees to allow it, while sending bodyguards to accompany her. Soon afterwards on a subway platform, Sally and her bodyguards await the train. As it arrives, the bodyguards are neatly dispatched by Brock, and Sally makes her rendezvous with Dr. Venture. On board the train, Sally tearfully rejoices at seeing Rusty again, while he is at best tolerant. In their discussion, it is revealed that he is there to take her away from her loveless marriage, if she will grant him access to the Impossible Plaza basement. Her new baby, Rocket Impossible, is at the park under the supervision of Sally's cousin Ned, a mentally challenged variation on the Thing. In the park, Ned is being watched over by Hank and Dean when they are ambushed by more of Impossible's guards and taken away. However, little Rocket Impossible crawls away unnoticed, hiding amongst the X-X-1's landing gear. Sally gets Brock and Rusty past the security and onto an elevator (as Brock voices his misgivings about preying on the woman's emotions), but they are captured by Richard, and shackled to chairs. Prof. Impossible explains that he discovered the Venture component years ago and that he doesn't trust Rusty to activate it after his "years of amphetamines and failure." Sally notices that Rocket is missing, and starts to chew Richard out as he assembles the device, which resembles a door frame made of metal pipes. Jonas Jr. uses a communicator hidden in his collar to contact H.E.L.P.eR. (much to Rusty's annoyance) and order the robot to deactivate the Impossible security systems. Meanwhile, The Grand Galactic Inquisitor, having been left behind in the X-X-1 for quite some time, decides to leave to locate the Ventures. Outside, he discoveres Rocket Impossible crawling on the ground. Reluctantly, he picks up the infant but commands him, "IGNORE ME!" H.E.L.P.eR. successfully deactivates Impossible's security systems, but is cornered and hugged into submission by the Impossible's robot babysiter H.U.G.G.I.E.. With the power out, the energy shackles holding the team vanish and Brock and Jonas Jr. bolt the four corners of Prof. Impossible's face to the wall. However, Impossible swells until he fills the room, pushing the Ventures and Sally out one of the windows. The team grabs onto Impossible's elastic body and plummet to the street below, through a sidewalk grate, and into the subway tunnel where they narrowly avoid an oncoming train by bouncing back up. Falling back town into the tunnel, Brock ties Impossible's foot to the back of the train, which then departs, stretching the scientist until the handle on the train snaps off and springs back up through the window, knocking Impossible out cold. The completed device lands with a bang on the sidewalk just as Brock's watch chimes midnight. Nothing happens. A taxi pulls up and out climbs the Grand Galactic Inquisitor, carrying little Rocket Impossible. He pronounces that he is ready to pass his judgment on humanity. Just then, the device activates, much like a stargate, and out steps Jonas Venture, Sr., alive and apparently no older. He calmly and coolly executes the Inquisitor with a laser gun. He turns to leave, but Rusty and Jonas Jr. tearfully implore him to stay. Their appeals prompt him to reveal that he is not in fact Jonas Sr., but an alien in disguise, and that he took the form of the elder Venture because he "figured it would be easier to accept." Rusty is infuriated and calls him several vulgar names until the alien, fed up, pulls open his face to reveal his true form. While it is not seen by the audience, the Venture team reacts with horrified shock, and the sight causes Ned Impossible to "crap his pants." After this heated exchange, the angry and insulted alien says that they "know what we're doing up there," and leaves. The team takes stock, and while Rusty is upset they made no profit, the others are glad they at least seemed to have saved the world. After the credits, Sally Impossible and Jonas Jr. (who introduces himself as J.J.) share a moment with heavy romantic foreshadowing. Brock is disturbed by the weird events they've witnessed, and Rusty is dismissive until he follows Brock's gaze upwards to see the immense flattened form of Richard Impossible flapping in the night air. Unsure, Rusty wonders aloud, "Should we help him?" Quotes *'Dr. Venture:' (Surprised by the seeing the Inquisitor for the first time) Ladysmith Black Mambazo!!! *'Grand Galactic Inquisitor:' Someone left a baby! (Picks up Rocket) Rocket: (Giggles) Grand Galactic Inquisitor: IGNORE ME! *'Jonny Quest:' Are you cops? *'Sally Impossible:' What's more important than your family? Prof. Richard Impossible: S-Science? *'Prof. Richard Impossible:' (When Brock grabs his cheek to bolt it to a wall) Of all the intolerable bugaboos! *'Inquisitor:' (as he pulls up in a taxi) Good news, simple subjects of Earth! The glorious moment of judgment is upon you! Taxi driver: Hey! It's eight-twenty on the meter, stretch! Inquisitor: IGNORE ME! *'Alien Venture:' Oh, Rusty. You were never alone. Those stars . . . well, okay, you can't see them right now because we're in the city, but those stars, they're always watching us. Trivia *An adult version of Jonny Quest appears in this episode, and apparently the years have been even less kind to him than to Thaddeus "Rusty" Venture. Paranoid and delusional, clad only in his trademark black shirt and white briefs, and sporting a horrible mustache, Quest is apparently living alone in a submerged bathysphere, and may be suffering from acute drug addiction. It may be noted that he isn't called "Jonny", but just Mr. Quest, however, the credits list him as Jonny Quest. *This is the second episode to include Richard and Sally Impossible. The last one, "Ice Station -- Impossible!", also included a guest from the Jonny Quest show, Race Bannon. It also seems that time was kinder to Race than Jonny. *Amoung the toys Colonel Gentleman lists as toys he "would have liked to have as a child, but they weren't invented yet" are; Micronauts, Scooby-Doo Monster Game, AT-AT Imperial Walker, Stay Alive: The Survival Game. *Jesus Jones is the band that the pirate captain and Jonas Jr. talk about. *The large menacing robot named Huggie (or possibly, H.U.G.G.I.E.) inside 1 Impossible Plaza that intimidates and then hugs H.E.L.P.eR. resembles an outsized H.E.R.B.I.E. *The picture of Dr. Venture and Dr. Jonas Venture Jr. swimming in diving suits in the theme video for Powerless in the Face of Death is actually the Captain and Dr. Jonas Venture Jr. in this episode. *This is the first time we ever see Spider-Skull Island. Predictably, it looks like a spider with a human skull on top. *The Grand Galactic Inquisitor has six fingers on each hand, as well as a voice that rattles Hank's "no nos". *The Grand Galactic Inquisitor's rotates to focus one of four differently colored eyes on his subject; red, blue, yellow and green. Each eye seems to have different purposes, such as he used the green to locate Dr. Venture and grab a note while he tends to use the red one when talking. *The idea of an alien taking the form of a lost love one comes from the novel Contact, by Carl Sagan. *Posters spoofing the silhouettes from iPod ads can be seen on the subway train. *The ending credit for World Leaders Entertainment features a caricature of Queen Elizabeth I, proclaiming "That is bloody good soup!" This is a reference to the show's first-season ending credit, when WLE was known as Noodlesoup Productions: a cartoon boy lisped "that's good soup!" Bloody is a mild expletive popular in the U.K. *This episode gives some level of a time-line to the series. By the age of Rocket, this must take place from a year-and-a-half to two after "Ice Station -- Impossible!". Goofs *Even though the alien posing as Jonas Venture says you can't see the stars in the city, in the after credits scene, you can clearly see stars in the sky. *Sally calls Ned Rocket's uncle, even though Cody (who is not seen this episode) is her brother, not Ned. This, however, could simply be a term of endearment. Escape to the House of Mummies Part II